Powerd NewsWrap 24th September 2025

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the Vision Australia and reading radio networks. This is the Powerd news wrap G'day. I'm Sam Rickard. It's the 24th of September. Another month almost gone, and we're reading articles from the Powerd dot media website, and joining me is the author of said articles. Go. Emma Myers, morning, Sam, now strictly speaking, you're not actually here. We're recording a tad in advance. So where exactly are you at the moment? I am up in the Hunter Valley for my brother's wedding. Oh, well, I hope you've picked out a nice dress and having a great old time. I will have Sam, all right. So you can say this is a mixed episode, but it's also very tight in its construction, because one article inspired the other article. Yeah, that's right. So I've been a fan of this actor for longer than I can remember, and he was in Canberra recently promoting this film called, What about Sal which is essentially what happens when, I guess our parents pass away. And it's about this man with Down Syndrome who doesn't want to go to a group home, so he ends up trying to find his birth father, who doesn't even know he exists. But this inspired you to actually look up what might actually happen if this occurred in reality. Yeah, that's all right. It's been on my mind for quite a while, and after the interview, I just thought, let's dig a bit deeper into this, because often for people with disability, parents don't just play the role of parents, they play the role of informal carer, friend, confidant, our biggest advocates, and once they pass away, yeah, I just want them to know what people who've gone through it have actually experienced. And the person you spoke to is one of the more extreme cases, because she essentially lost everything. Yeah, it's a pretty horrific story. Her father wanted to put the family home in her name, but she thought that her siblings would take care of her so that didn't end up happening, and now she's homeless. I mean, it's one of the justifications we hear often for the NDIS itself and for bringing in professionals to

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look after people with a disability is you don't want the sum total of everything to be on your family. I mean, I certainly don't want my to have to rely on family for

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me getting about no but at the same time, that's I mean, and I can't speak for every person who's listening or who has a disability, but at the same time, if you do have a supportive family, it can make all the difference, and it's different to having a supportive support worker as it were, sure you get some really great ones who do end up becoming part of your inner circle and feeling like family. But there's nothing like a blood relative who knows you almost better than you know yourself. Indeed, indeed. All right, so we are now crossing over to the news read by a new news reader. Yes, so Try saying that three times fast. Over to you. John Hawking, thank you, Sam, for many people with disability, families often play a far more extensive role than just relatives. They can also act as informal support workers, friends, confidants and advocates. But what happens to adults with disability when their loved one passes away? Hala, black, smarty was living with her parents until they both passed away within six months of each other. MS, black Smarty lives with porphyria, which is a rare blood disease which blocks the oxygen carrying ability in the blood. She also has an intellectual disability. She says her mother was her whole world. My mum was my support. She was helping me shower. She was helping me with everything, dressing everything. Ms blacksmarty said her father wanted to put a.

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The family home in her name so she was taken care of however. She believed that she should be cared for by her siblings. I didn't let him do it because I wanted me, my sisters and my brothers, to stay together. I wanted for us to be like more, closer together. But actually that never happened at all while. Ms, black Smarty applied for both specialist disability accommodation and supported independent living. Her application was rejected right now, couch surfing and yeah, so um, when was Ms? Blacksmarty says she is getting by with the help of friends and support workers. They've always been there for me. Feel like my friends among support workers are more family than my family valid. That's V, a, l, I d is an advocacy organization for adults with intellectual disability, and it's based in Victoria valid Self Advocacy Team Leader Anthony Rizzoli says, depending on the situation, people with intellectual disability are shown easy read information around topics such as dying and grief, turning to the NDIS for support after their families pass when it comes around things like death and dying, it's important people are constantly being informed about what services are out there to support them when they're in this situation and if they need it. Ms Rizzoli explains, the resources are developed by and for people with intellectual disability. I do understand that sometimes it's very difficult. That's why we produce some information with pictorials to explain certain things. Currently, we are talking to people about what supports they need and future living options. He explains, we talk about things like what emotional support you might need, what equipment and so on. It's an ongoing conversation. As for Miss Black smarty, she believes there's no shame in having a family member with disability. If you have someone in your family that's got a disability, it's not a shame, and there's no need for you to be embarrassed of them.

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The disability community has experienced a shift in its representation within the Australian entertainment industry over the past couple of years, with content such as children's program bluey and the SBS series erotic stories hitting our screens, according to Screen Australia, now, a film that showcases the intricacies of aging parents, disability and unconditional love has hit Australian screens. What about Sal stars Gerald O'Dwyer as a 30 something year old man with Down syndrome, who, upon his mother being diagnosed with terminal cancer and fearing he will be placed in a group home, goes in search of his father, played by John Jarrett, who also wrote and directed the film. Powerd media sat down with the Australian screen legend, whose screen credits include Picnic at Hanging Rock and the Wolf Creek franchise to discuss how the film came into being. Well, I was at a football match with my mate, David, because we're going to love run really, and in the stand with a Down Syndrome man, probably in mid 30s, and his mum's there. She's in her 70s, and every time we scored a try, he's so exuberant. And I walked back to the car with Dave O and I said, wonder what would happen if his mum died and he had nobody, and I thought that's a bloody good idea for a film. So that's where the idea came from. When questioned about how the film captured an accurate representation of disability, the actor praised his co star, Jared. Extremely good actor, really intelligent, especially with emotions. Jared O'Dwyer was awarded the Best Male Actor at Sydney's Tropfest, the world's largest Short Film Festival in 2009 for his role in the short film be my brother by bus stop. Films took us about two years to get the film, so I had two years to really get to know Him. And so I say he co wrote it because I got this his, um, his way of thinking and his way of speaking. The actor recalls conversations with Mr. O'Dwyer that struck a chord with how the script was being written. I'm talking to Jared about the script before he made the film. I says, So tell me exactly what that you mean. He met my mother, and he had a one night standing with my mother. So I grabbed things like that and put it straight in the movie Mr. Jarrett, who has over 100 screen credits to his name, believes the reason the film resonates so well with people is because the character is very close to how Mr. O'Dwyer operates, and that's why.

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It rings pretty true. You know, Jared is amazing. It's a really special film. What about Sal? It's available to stream now. And so now, back to Emma and Sam. Thank you, John. Now, talking of John's, what is it like to actually meet somebody who you've sort of been following? You know, an actor, as it were, almost to say you're a hero. I mean, I wouldn't necessarily say he's a hero of mine. It's more that, you know, when you were a kid and you grow up watching a TV show, you always feel like you've been partially raised by the characters. And so I was a huge McLeod stewardess fan growing up, it's still my go to

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show whenever I need a pick me up show, and because it's just a real feel good thing to watch. And so actually, getting to meet him was a real interesting experience. I hadn't seen Wolf Creek at the time. I did kind of binge watch it in the week after, and it was interesting, just because going to interview John, I kind of went, Oh yeah, I've seen this stuff. Is good, but, I mean, I was excited, but I wasn't in the mindset of, oh my god. It's 200 like Legend of Australian screen, you know, Picnic at Hanging Rock, Wolf Creek. All of these amazing films Australia, all of these amazing cultural phenomenon, but I didn't feel that until I got in the room, and then, I mean, I I think it was okay, but I also over analyzed. So I think I may have fangirled a little bit.

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He was so generous with his time, and he he is the sweetest, most giving, charming individual you will ever meet. Now, I found it interesting what he had to say about the thought process of how the he came up with a movie in the first place, and that is actually seeing a supporter at a football match who had Down syndrome with his mum, and wondering, okay, what would happen if that mother wasn't around anymore? Yeah, it was. It was quite interesting. But as we said, it was just a joy to watch someone so enthusiastic for supporting their team, and just he ended up almost hanging out with the guy for the majority of the night, so it was just a really organic way of interacting with someone with a disability, for someone who isn't part of that community, indeed. I mean, that's what it comes down to, is the vast majority of people out there are not exposed to disability in any way. And it's often quite a neat way to come across somebody in a social setting and realize that, hey, we're not that different from everybody else, really. Or Yes, we may be different, but it's in a rather cool way. I mean, I always, I always say. I just when they rest, someone questions my disability, I just say, I come with bonus features Exactly, exactly. And he had a lot to say about his co star as well, who also had Down syndrome, yeah. So yeah. He said it is co star was so involved in the development of this film that he said that he essentially helped to write the script, because John would take notes of how his Coast doll would speak, and he just put them directly into the film because he said something about, like, the character of the product of one not stand. But Jerry would would say, so what is it one night standings, literally, I think unless you do that, you're not going to get authentic dialog from someone with a intellectual disability of any sort, really, because everyone thinks differently. But yes, people with autism or Down syndrome, they think a little differently than most. Yeah, I think, I think we all think a bit differently from people who are in the disability community. I've always said I have to think in Technicolor, because otherwise, if I think I'm black and white, there's no legal room that is a wrap for this wrap next week we are looking at the National Environment plan. But until then, bye, for now, bye. You can find these articles and more by going to Powerd, spelled P, O, W, E, R, D.

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TV dot media, along with the podcast of this show the Powerd news rep was brought to you by disability media Australia. This show was produced by Sam Rickard in the Adelaide studios of Vision Australia radio. You.